1. Field
Various embodiments described herein relate to the field of optical sensors for detection of an analyte in a sample.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is a need in many industries, including medical, environmental, pharmaceutical, forensic, and many others, to be able to detect and characterize an analyte in a sample. For example, it can be desirable to qualitatively assess and/or quantitatively measure the presence, location, and/or amount of an analyte in the sample. The analyte of interest may be, for example, a molecule, such as a protein, DNA, etc.
A number of optical chemical and biological sensors have been developed for characterizing an analyte in a sample. Such sensors have taken advantage of many optical principles and techniques, including ellipsometry, spectroscopy, interferometry, and surface plasmon resonance. In some optical sensors a desired analyte quantity can be determined by measuring, for example, an optical characteristic of the analyte, or the effect of the analyte on an optical characteristic of the sensor, such as refractive index, resonance, absorbance, fluorescence, etc.